Chapter 132: The Warmth and Coldness of Human Relationships

As Li Dong walked out of the teahouse, he let out a sigh of relief.

Finally, he managed to deal with Zhao. Zhao, being quite bold, still demanded 500,000 from Li Dong.

However, this 500,000 wasn't for nothing. Zhao was serious and promised to disburse the loan in a week.

For a loan involving 20 million, getting it approved in a week is quite risky.

This was only possible because Yuanfang's performance had been consistently good; otherwise, Zhao Jinsheng wouldn't have dared to take the risk.

No matter what, the sooner the loan is processed, the better. Li Dong didn't care how Zhao Jinsheng operated; as long as the money came through, the 500,000 spent would be worth it.

After finishing a cigarette and preparing to get into his car, Li Dong's phone rang.

He initially thought it was from the annoying fat guy again, but when he checked the number, it was Fang Qingfei.

As soon as he answered the call, Fang Qingfei angrily said, "Mr. Li, Li the Billionaire, Li the Tycoon! I've processed your withdrawal procedures. Will you come pick them up yourself, or should I send them over to you?"

Li Dong's face darkened, and he replied irritably, "Did I provoke you?"

"How dare you ask!"

Fang Qingfei was furious upon hearing Li Dong's irresponsible response.

"You disappeared without a word for more than ten days, didn't attend classes, and didn't even ask for leave. Do you think the school is a joke?"

"I know you're rich, and I've seen the posts on the forum, knowing you are extremely wealthy and don't need a graduation certificate. But could you stop dragging me down?"

Fang Qingfei felt a lot of frustration and bitterness. There was no way to express her suffering.

Jiang University is a prestigious institution with strict assessments for both students and professors. Students who skip classes too often can be expelled.

That's not the main issue. The main problem is that students' absences affect the professor's evaluation.

Fang Qingfei was currently in the process of being evaluated for her title. She was very likely to be promoted to lecturer this year, but because Li Dong skipped so many classes, the school's inspection team caught it.

As a result, Fang Qingfei was in a difficult position. The dean directly told her that she could forget about being promoted to lecturer in the first half of the year and should try again in the second half.

No wonder Fang Qingfei was furious. Li Dong's wealth was his own business, and it didn't benefit her in any way.

But the title was directly related to her salary and future prospects. Delays of half a year were no joke, and who knew if there would be other changes in the next six months.

This was why she was so angry. Otherwise, Li Dong was wealthy; she wouldn't have gone out of her way to irritate him.

After Fang Qingfei finished speaking, Li Dong was at a loss for words.

Jiang University is this strict? He hadn't paid much attention before.

He hadn't expected to be away for so long this time and didn't realize it would affect Fang Qingfei. He indeed felt guilty about this.

Since he was at fault, Li Dong could only endure Fang Qingfei's scolding. After she finished, he said, "Alright, I admit my mistake. I apologize to you."

Hearing Li Dong admit his fault, Fang Qingfei felt a sense of relief.

Given the situation, there was no point in discussing anything further. However, Li Dong apologizing was something. After all, he was now considered a significant figure, and Fang Qingfei felt somewhat satisfied.

But after Li Dong finished speaking, Fang Qingfei was displeased, her mind fixed on one thought: no one should stop me, I'm going to kill this jerk!

"By the way, I have a few things to take care of these days. Help me request a few days off," Li Dong said nonchalantly.

Fang Qingfei almost bit her teeth in frustration, exasperatedly saying, "Why are you still in school with all your money? Go back and be a proper boss, let me be a teacher. Can't you stop making things worse for me?"

Li Dong pursed his lips. The way she said it sounded ambiguous.

A woman telling a man not to cause trouble for her, Li Dong couldn't help but think his mind was wandering.

As for withdrawing from school, Li Dong definitely wasn't going to do it.

Having money is one thing, but he still wanted to complete his studies. Not for anything else, but for his reputation, he needed to get his graduation certificate.

A wealthy college student is seen as an entrepreneur, but a wealthy high school graduate is considered nouveau riche. Did Li Dong want to admit he's nouveau riche?

Ignoring Fang Qingfei's comment, Li Dong said, "I'll talk to Dean Huang myself later. After all, I'm considered wealthy. Old Huang might not issue an honorary professor certificate, but surely he won't block my graduation certificate."

Fang Qingfei was left speechless. Although Li Dong seemed a bit pretentious, she knew he wasn't entirely wrong.

If the dean knew Li Dong was the head of Yuanfang, he might actually consider issuing a certificate.

Of course, an honorary professor title was out of the question, but Old Huang would definitely not block Li Dong's graduation certificate.

In today's society, whether one has money or power, it's all about connections. Nobody would complain about having more connections.

Since Li Dong was willing to handle it himself, Fang Qingfei couldn't be bothered to deal with him any further. She huffed and hung up the phone.

...

With the loan and school matters settled, Li Dong's mood was initially good.

But when he returned to Yuanfang, his good mood vanished.

His mood had been like a roller coaster these days—good one moment, bad the next. Li Dong felt he was almost losing his mind.

Looking at the short, chubby guy in front of him, Li Dong's anger flared up.

How realistic do you have to be to pull off such a ridiculous thing!

Yuanfang's store was still operating, profits were steady, and the news hadn't fully spread, yet someone was already coming to demand payment!

Even if his stocks had lost value, isn't it too soon to demand money for a mere 200,000?

Especially when the other party mentioned the amount of the payment, Li Dong was dumbfounded with anger!

200,000!

A mere 200,000 in payment!

Do you look down on me this much?

Do you look down on Yuanfang this much?

The profits of his stores in a day exceed this amount, and yet they're demanding money from him because of 200,000!

Li Dong said nothing, directly pulling out 20 stacks of cash from the office safe and slamming them on the table, glaring at the other party, "Take the money and get lost!"

The other party was sweating profusely, nervously saying, "Mr. Li, that's not what I meant. I just…"

Li Dong didn't speak, simply staring coldly at him.

The other party, feeling guilty, finally counted the money carefully under Li Dong's watch, packed it up, and forced a smile, saying, "Mr. Li, it's really just a problem with my cash flow…"

"Don't you understand, take the money and get lost!"

Li Dong had not planned to lose his temper, but the other party's unnecessary addition to the statement made him furious.

Sun Tao, standing beside him, gently tugged on his sleeve. Li Dong grunted and sat back in his chair, no longer looking at him.

The other party, feeling embarrassed, apologized to Li Dong and Sun Tao before leaving with the box.

Once he was gone, Li Dong laughed in anger, "Is this what they call kicking a man when he's down? The wall hasn't even fallen yet. Is it really necessary for these guys to act like this?"

"Small businesses can't afford to lose 200,000," Sun Tao said justly.

If it were a major manufacturer, they wouldn't be so petty.

Leaving aside whether large manufacturers knew about Li Dong's situation, even if they did, they wouldn't come knocking right now.

After all, Yuanfang was still operational, the financial chain wasn't broken, and the stores were still profitable. They would choose to observe first.

Only when they saw signs of Yuanfang being unable to continue would they come to deliver a blow. At that point, they would only care about the money, not the people.

Li Dong thought it made sense. It wasn't worth getting angry with such people. Besides, these guys shouldn't expect to do business with Yuanfang in the future.